First Impressions of a Venice Biennale Torn Apart by the Present

Ben Davis | Artnet | 6th May 2026

The Venice Biennale is so big that generalisations are unavoidable. One writer points out that multiple controversies create the impression that the event is “on the verge of collapsing”. The linked piece, however, finds “plenty to like” with an awareness of the backlash against identity themes and a move toward the “craft-adjacent, ritual-inspired idiom that defines what matters now in global art. [The Biennale] makes visible the further collapse of Western cultural authority.”